What happened
During an aerial firefighting mission, an aircraft was performing a fire bombing run when it received communication from a 'Bird Dog' aircraft indicating that the initial approach had missed its target. In response to this information, the pilot initiated a left-hand climbing turn toward rising terrain. During this maneuver, after completing approximately 220 degrees of the turn, the aircraft experienced a stall, followed by a sharp roll to the left and a steep nose drop.
The aircraft impacted the ground roughly 8 miles east-southeast of Ashcroft, BC. The impact and subsequent fire resulted in the total destruction of the plane. There were three fatalities among the occupants, which included the pilot-in-command, a second pilot, and one passenger serving as a mechanic.
Findings
Official investigations determined that before the crash, the pilot-in-command had notified the 'Bird Dog' aircraft that he was experiencing difficulties. However, the crew did not follow the recommendation from the other aircraft to jettison the load of fire retardant. The accident occurred because the aircraft lost sufficient airspeed during a low left climbing turn, leading to an aerodynamic stall and subsequent impact with the ground in a nose-down, left-wing-low attitude.